The Music of the Night

Chapter 17

Emmy led Ellie to one of the other large rooms where the set for the Phantom's lair was at, and she stopped her before she could go any further. 

"Wait here," she said gently, patting her shoulder.

Ellie obliged and wiped her tears away while she walked ahead, leaving her behind. 

Usually, she would've hated the fact that she was in knee-deep water, but she was too focused on apologizing to Gerard to really care at all. 

Wanting to look somewhat presentable, Ellie straightened out her brown hair and stood up taller, but she didn't feel any more confident.

A second later, Emmy came back and said, "I'll be right here if you need me, Ellie."

She nodded gratefully and took a deep breath, then stepped out from behind the corner and walked in. 

Gerard was standing by what appeared to be an organ, and the candles surrounding him gave his distorted face an ethereal glow. 

Ellie was expecting him to angrily yell at her as soon as they locked eyes, but instead, he gave her the opposite reaction.

He quickly walked down the small set of stairs and ran into the water, pulling her into his arms when he was close enough. 

"Thank God you're alright!" he breathed, pressing multiple kisses on the top of her head. "I was so worried about you."

Caught off-guard by Gerard's reaction, Ellie didn't immediately respond to him, and she felt like a statue when he pulled back to look at her. 

"Where were you last night?" he asked frantically. "Everyone was looking for you, but no one could find out where you had gone. I thought something had happened-"

"Gerard." 

Her tone was firm as she interrupted him, and he instantly stopped talking. 

When Ellie found her words, she slowly asked, "Why are you acting like this?"

He furrowed his brows in confusion. 

"I don't follow."

She unhooked his arms from around her waist and stepped backwards so that there was a good distance between them. 

"Did you, like, forget what happened last night?" Ellie questioned, raising her eyebrows high.

"No," Gerard shook his head. "I'm perfectly aware of last night's events, but I'm not blaming you for anything."

Her eyes widened considerably, and she could only stutter when she said, "W-what? Why not?"

"Because you didn't do anything wrong," he replied, making it sound like it was obvious. "You were overwhelmed, and you couldn't handle the pressure of your stress. I get it. I've had the same thing happen to me as well."

Why was he so understanding after how badly she had treated him? 

It didn't make any sense.

Ellie expressed those thoughts aloud by saying, "You can't be serious, Gerard. Do you even hear yourself?"

Gerard looked a bit hurt by her question, but he stood by his statement. 

"You did nothing wrong, Ellie. Please believe me when I say that."

She couldn't bring herself to understand why he was being so kind to her when she clearly deserved to be punished, and Ellie shook her head in disbelief. 

"I need to leave," she said as she turned around and walked away.

"Ellie, wait!" he called after her. "Where are you going?"